Semi-automatic pistol with a sliding barrel

ABSTRACT

The pistol comprises a frame ( 1 ) containing a barrel ( 4 ) slidably mounted. The pistol further comprises a firing mechanism comprising a hammer ( 11 ) mounted so that it can pivot at the rear of the pistol, and a trigger ( 10 ) secured to an actuating arm ( 15 ) that acts on means ( 19 ) of arming the hammer ( 11 ) and retaining it in the armed position. The means for arming and retaining the hammer ( 11 ) comprise a link ( 19 ) directly connected to the hammer ( 11 ) by an articulation ( 20 ) and which is actuated via a lever ( 40 ) pivot-mounted in the frame ( 1 ). The lever has a top end actuated by the barrel as the latter moves into its forward position in order to cause the lever ( 40 ) to pivot, and a bottom end acting like a cam on the link ( 19 ) by pushing it backwards in order to rearm the hammer ( 11 ).

The present invention relates to a semi-automatic pistol with a slidingbarrel.

A pistol is defined as being semi-automatic because it is provided witha magazine from which a new cartridge is automatically loaded after eachshot, while it is necessary to press again the trigger for firing eachcartridge until the magazine is out of bullets.

A conventional semi-automatic pistol comprises a frame wherein there isarranged a barrel. The back end of the barrel forms a firing orcombustion chamber associated with a receiving cavity for receiving acartridge having a downwards opening to receive a magazine, and a sideopening associated with a mechanism for extracting and ejecting thecartridge case after shooting.

The upper portion of the frame of a conventional pistol is covered bymeans of a slidably mounted grip extending along the barrel which isconnected to the frame. The grip comprises a firing pin associated witha hammer or striker mounted so that it can pivot in the rear portion ofthe pistol. The firing pin has the shape of a needle mounted such thatit is axially movable inside the grip in order to transmit the strikingof the striker to a cartridge housed inside the firing chamber at theback end of the barrel.

While shooting, the grip is kicked back due to combustion gases thatcreate an important pressure inside the barrel. A recoil springcompressed during the recoil of the grip then returns it to its initialposition after extracting and ejecting the case, which allows mounting anew cartridge inside the receiving cavity and then moving it axiallypassing over a ramp to be housed inside the chamber of the barrel.

With respect to conventional pistols, one of the advantages of asemi-automatic pistol with a sliding barrel is based on the fact that itallows, for a given overall length, housing a barrel of a length that isconsiderably increased with respect to the length of the barrel of aconventional pistol. A longer barrel provides improved precision. Such apistol can therefore be more compact for the same barrel length.

A semi-automatic pistol with a sliding barrel is known from U.S. Pat.No. 1,376,456. Nevertheless, the pistol described therein comprises alarge number of parts that are hard to manufacture and to put intopractice. The guiding of the barrel in the frame is not optimal eitherbecause it is done on only one side of the barrel.

An objective of the invention is to simplify the construction of thepistol by means of reducing the number of parts necessary for thecorrect operation of the pistol, which also entails a considerably lowermanufacturing cost. This particularly relates to the mechanism forrearming and retaining the striker in its armed position, which becomesextremely reliable as a result of the invention.

The objective of the invention is a semi-automatic pistol comprising aframe wherein there is arranged a barrel the firing chamber of which isassociated with a receiving cavity for receiving a cartridge, saidreceiving cavity being provided with a downwards opening to communicatewith a magazine, and with a side ejection port associated with amechanism for extracting and ejecting the case after shooting, thepistol further comprising a firing mechanism comprising a strikermounted so that it can pivot in the rear portion of the pistol andsuitable to initiate firing a cartridge inside the firing chamber, and atrigger integral with an actuating arm which acts on means for armingand retaining the striker in the armed position, wherein the barrel ismounted in an axially slidable manner between a forward position towhich it is driven by the friction of the bullet when shooting acartridge, and a recoiled position to which it is pushed by a recoilspring until reloading a new cartridge, characterized in that said meansfor arming and retaining the striker comprise a link which at its backend is connected to the striker by an articulation and which is operatedby means of a lever pivotably mounted inside the frame, said leverhaving a top end operated by the barrel during the movement of thebarrel to its forward position in order to pivot said lever, and abottom end forming a cam that acts on said link during the pivoting ofsaid lever, pushing it back so as to rearm the striker.

According to other features of the invention:

-   -   the barrel acts on said top end of said pivoting lever by means        of a projection provided at its back end hitting against said        pivoting lever such that it is pivoted forward;    -   said link is provided with an L-shaped guiding slot the large        side of which extends horizontally and the small side of which        extends vertically upwards, a guiding pin incorporated in the        frame extending inside said L-shaped guiding slot such that it        allows the link to carry out a translatory motion towards the        back for the purpose of arming the striker while at the same        time it is subjected to the effect of the action of a spring        that downwardly bias it such that said pin is housed inside said        small side so as to retain said link in an armed position of the        striker;    -   said link can be released from said armed position by means of a        nose which forms a cam provided at the back end of the actuating        arm and which is suitable for abutting on the underside against        the link to push it upwards;    -   said actuating arm incorporates an elastic member which projects        upwards and during the pivoting thereof abuts against a lug        provided on said link such that together they form a flexible        stop;    -   said elastic member is a wire spring;    -   a rear wall of the receiving cavity for receiving a cartridge is        provided with a hole centered on the firing chamber and which        allows the striker to strike a cartridge inside the firing        chamber directly through said hole;    -   the striking end of the striker has an overall conical shape        complementary to the inner shape of said hole;    -   the barrel slides inside a cylindrical gap formed inside the        frame being guided by a collar provided on the periphery of the        barrel and by an end part with a central guiding bore arranged        in the front end of the pistol;    -   the recoil spring is a helicoidal spring arranged inside an        annular interstice formed between said cylindrical gap and the        barrel being supported on said collar of the barrel on one side        and on said end part on the other side;    -   the mechanism for extracting and ejecting the case after        shooting comprises an ejector plate arranged opposite the        ejection port and one of the ends of which is connected to the        barrel and the other end of which has an elastic loop that        extends radially and is suitable for being compressed by the        cartridge as the cartridge moves up into the receiving cavity        for receiving the cartridge;    -   the ejector plate has at least one longitudinal guiding slot        that receives a guiding pin so as to limit its axial movement to        an ejection position;    -   in order to center the cartridge as it moves up into the        receiving cavity, the rear wall of said cavity is provided with        a first lug arranged so as to form an upper abutment, and with a        second lug arranged so as to form a side abutment;    -   said second lug is provided with a projection suitable for being        placed behind a ridge of the cartridge so as to form a member        for extracting the case after shooting;    -   the magazine is closed at its top end by a rotary closure member        having the shape of a stirrup two parallel sides of which are        shown to be pivoting on the top end of the magazine;    -   one of the sides of the stirrup incorporates a leg directed        downwards to penetrate a guiding slot provided at the top end of        the magazine, and it is suitable for cooperating with an elastic        member provided inside the gap for receiving the magazine for        the purpose of pivoting the rotary closure member to its open        position;    -   an abutment member in the form of a shaft is mounted such that        it slides upwards and downwards to project into the receiving        cavity when it is in an upper position, such that it prevents        the barrel from returning to its recoiled position so that the        ejection port is kept open towards the receiving cavity; and    -   the shaft forming an abutment is arranged in front of the        magazine and comprises at its top end a ho ok projecting into a        slot of the magazine to cooperate with a raising plate for        raising the cartridges in order to move the shaft upwards after        shooting the last cartridge inside the magazine.

Other features and advantages of the invention will become evident fromthe following description of a non-limiting embodiment of the inventionin reference to the attached drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal cross-section of a pistol according to theinvention in its standby position, without a cartridge,

FIG. 2 a is a side view of an ejector plate according to the invention,

FIG. 2 b is a schematic end view showing the case of a cartridgesupported against the ejector plate of FIG. 2 a which is arrangedopposite a lug for extracting the case,

FIG. 3 shows the trigger associated with an actuating arm of the firingmechanism,

FIG. 4 shows the striker connected to a link forming a member for armingand retaining the striker in its armed position on the left and apivoting lever for automatically rearming the striker by acting on thelink on the right,

FIGS. 5 to 7 are schematic longitudinal cross-sections illustrating theoperation of the pistol according to the invention, FIG. 5 shows thearming, FIG. 6 shows the armed striker ready to strike a cartridgeinside the firing chamber, and FIG. 7 shows the striking and theejection of the bullet,

FIGS. 8 to 11 are cross-section views showing the details of a magazineaccording to the invention,

FIG. 12 is a longitudinal cross-section view illustrating the operationof an abutment which stops the return of the barrel when the magazine isempty,

FIG. 13 is a cross-section view showing a magazine in place inside thebutt of the pistol,

FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing the location of control members ofsafety devices,

FIG. 15A is a top view of a magazine showing a rotary closure member inits closed position, and

FIG. 15B is a top view of a magazine showing a rotary closure member inits open position.

Identical or equivalent elements have the same reference signs in thedrawings.

In the longitudinal cross-section of the pistol of FIG. 1, the essentialelements are shown in their standby position inside the frame 1, beforeusing the pistol.

The frame 1 is made up of a butt 2 inclined towards the back and of anupper portion 3 which extends horizontally extension wherein there isarranged a barrel 4. The back end of the barrel 4 forms a firing orcombustion chamber 5 which is associated with a receiving cavity 6 forreceiving a cartridge 7 (not depicted in FIG. 1). The cavity 6 isprovided with a downwards opening 8 to communicate with a magazine 9(illustrated in FIGS. 8 to 13) and with a side ejection port 8′ (seeFIG. 13) associated with a mechanism for extracting and ejecting thecase 7″ after shooting. This mechanism will be explained in detailbelow.

The pistol also comprises a firing mechanism comprising a trigger 10connected to means for arming and retaining a striker 11 mounted so thatit can pivot on a shaft 11′ in the rear portion of the pistol. A spring12 is arranged such that it abuts against the bottom end of the striker11 to act on it towards the position shown in FIG. 1.

To aim before shooting, the pistol is also provided, in a conventionalmanner, with a sight notch 13 located towards the rear and of aforesight 14 located towards the front on the upper face of the pistol.

The trigger 10 is integral with an actuating arm 15. Thetrigger-actuating arm assembly is mounted so that it can pivot about ashaft 16 extending inside an oblong bore 17 inside the assembly. Theactuating arm 15 is downwardly biased by a wire form spring 18 arrangedabove the actuating arm 15 one of the ends of which is supported againstthe upper face of the actuating arm and the other end is supportedagainst the frame 1.

The actuating arm 15 acts on a member for arming and retaining thestriker in the armed position, generally referred to as a catch. In theillustrated example, this member is formed by a link 19 which at itsback end is directly connected to the striker 11 by means of anarticulation 20. The link is provided with an L-shaped guiding slot 21the large side 21′ of which extends horizontally and the small side 21″of which extends vertically upwards (see FIG. 4). A guiding pin 22incorporated in the frame 1 extends inside the L-shaped guiding slot 21such that it allows the link 19 to carry out a translatory motiontowards the back for the purpose of arming the striker 11.

At the end of this translatory motion towards the back, the link 19 canmove slightly downwards by the effect of the action of a pressure spring23 such that the guiding pin 22 is housed in the small side 21″ of theguiding slot 21 so as to retain the link 19 to lock the striker 11 inits armed position.

One of the ends of the pressure spring 23 is supported against the uppersurface of the rear portion of the link 19 to downwardly bias it for thepurpose of keeping the pin 22 in the small side in its upper lockingposition (see FIG. 1).

To push the link upwards again such that it makes the pin 22 enter thelong side of the L-shaped guiding slot 21, the actuating arm 15 isprovided at its back end with a nose which forms a cam 24 intended forbeing supported on a lug 25 provided on a lower edge of the link 19 whenthe back end of the actuating arm 15 is pivoted upwards after pressingthe trigger 10. The link 19 is thus released from its position forretaining the striker 11 and moves forward for the purpose of allowingthe striker to pivot in order to trigger the shot.

The actuating arm 15 is furthermore, near the cam 24, provided with agroove 26 wherein there is housed an elastic member in the form of awire spring 27 which, during the pivoting of the actuating arm 15, abutsagainst a lug 28 arranged above on the link 19, above the L-shaped slot21. This spring 27 thus forms a flexible stop together with the lug 28.

The barrel 4 is mounted in an axially slidable manner for moving betweena forward position to which it is driven by the friction of the bullet7′ when shooting a cartridge 7, and a recoiled position to which it ispushed by a recoil spring 29 that is compressed by the barrel 4 duringits movement towards the forward position. The barrel 4 recoils untilreloading a new cartridge 7 which has previously been mounted from themagazine into the receiving cavity 6 during the movement of the barrel 4towards its forward position.

During its movement towards the recoiled position, the barrel 4 ispushed effectively until being supported against a rear wall 30 of thereceiving cavity 6 and the new cartridge 7 is thus automatically locatedinside the firing chamber 5 of the barrel 4, without having to move itlongitudinally, as is the case in conventional pistols. More precisely,the cartridge 7 always moves up parallel to axis A-A of the barrel 4 andis also stored parallel to this axis inside the magazine.

In a conventional fixed-barrel pistol, the cartridges are stored, incontrast, inclined inside the magazine for the purpose of facilitatingtheir passage over a ramp in order to move longitudinally towards thefiring chamber. One of the advantages of the pistol with a slidingbarrel is that the longitudinal movement of the cartridge towards thefiring chamber is eliminated, and therefore no ramp is necessary, whichexcludes the risk of the cartridge becoming jammed during such movementin the longitudinal direction.

The barrel 4 can recoil to the rear wall of the receiving cavity 6 forreceiving the cartridge 7, and it is therefore possible to arrange inthe frame 1 a barrel 4 having a length that is considerably increasedwith respect to the length of a barrel in a conventional fixed-barrelpistol having the same overall length. This increased length can clearlybe seen when comparing FIGS. 1 and 5, the latter figure showing thebarrel 4 in its forward position.

By way of example, for an overall pistol length of 183 mm, aconventional fixed-barrel pistol has a barrel length of approximately 97mm, whereas the pistol according to the invention will have a barrellength of approximately 155 mm. As previously mentioned, an increasedbarrel length provides greater shot precision.

The rear wall 30 of the receiving cavity 6 of the cartridge 7 isprovided with a hole 31 centered on the firing chamber 5 of the barrel4. This hole 31 allows the striker 11 to strike a cartridge locatedinside the firing chamber 5, and which is then supported against thisrear wall 30, directly through this hole 31.

This arrangement, which is a logical consequence of the fact that thefiring chamber 5 is supported against the rear wall 30 of the receivingcavity 6 for receiving the cartridge 7 when shooting, allows eliminatingthe firing pin which is necessary in conventional pistols. In thisregard, the pistol according to the invention works like a revolverwherein the striker strikes the cartridge directly.

For the purpose of optimizing the striking precision, the striking endof the striker 11 has an overall conical shape complementary to theinner shape of the hole 31 in the rear wall 30.

According to the invention, the barrel 4 slides inside a cylindrical gap32 formed inside the frame 1. In its alternating movement between theforward position and the recoiled position, the barrel 4 is guided by acollar 33 provided on the periphery of the barrel and by an end piece 34with a central guiding bore arranged in the front end of the pistol.

The recoil spring 29 is a helicoidal sp ring arranged inside an annularinterstice 35 formed between the cylindrical gap 32 and the barrel. Thishelicoidal spring is supported on the collar 33 of the barrel 4 on oneside and on the end part 34 on the other side.

For the purpose of defining the recoil of the barrel 4 to its recoiledposition, a lug 36 is advantageously provided on the inner face of thecylindrical gap 32 so as to form an abutment for the collar 33 of thebarrel 4 when it returns to its recoiled position.

For the purpose of locking the barrel 4 in its non-use position shown inFIG. 1, a safe in the form of a locking device 37 for locking the barrelis provided in the front end of the pistol. This device comprises aplate 38 fixed in the front end of the pistol and comprising a centralbore associated with a thread to cooperate with a nut 39. The safetydevice 37 can comprise as a variant a bayonet locking device.

For its automatic rearming, the pistol according to the inventioncomprises a pivoting lever 40 which acts on the link 19 forming a memberfor arming and retaining the striker in the armed position.

The lever 40 is pivotably mounted on a rotation shaft 41. The lever 40has a top end 40′ operated by the barrel 4 as it moves to its forwardposition, and a bottom end 40″ having a rounded shape forming a camarranged opposite the front end of the link 19. The lever 40 is providedat its top end 40′ with a lug 42 which, during the forward movement ofthe barrel 4, is driven by a lug 43 arranged at the back end of thebarrel. This causes the pivoting lever 40 to pivot (see FIG. 5) suchthat its bottom end 40″ pushes the link 19 back, which in turn pivotsthe striker 11 to its armed position while at the same time the link islocked in this position in the manner already described.

The lever 40, as well as the link 19 and the actuating arm 15, canadvantageously be manufactured very precisely by laser cutting from ametal sheet.

The pistol is furthermore provided with a mechanism for extracting andejecting the case 7″ after shooting the cartridge 7. This mechanismcomprises an ejector plate 44 arranged opposite the ejection port 8′ andone of the ends of which is connected to the barrel 4 and the other endof which has an elastic loop 45 that extends radially (see FIGS. 2 a and2 b). This loop 45 is compressed by the cartridge 7 as the cartridgemoves up into the receiving cavity 6 of the cartridge.

For the purpose of correctly centering the cartridge 7 as it moves upinto the receiving cavity 6, the rear wall 30 of said cavity is providedwith a first lug 46 arranged so as to form an upper abutment, and asecond lug 47 arranged so as to form a side abutment.

The lug is provide d with a side projection suitable for being locatedbehind a ridge provided on the cap of the case to retain it in place inorder to extract it from the chamber 5 when the barrel moves towards itsforward position.

The lugs 46 and 47 as well as the loop 45 of the ejector plate 44 areretained in cuts formed on the face of the back end of the barrel 4 toallow said barrel to return towards the rear until it is supportedagainst the rear wall 30 of the receiving cavity 5.

In the illustrated example, the ejector plate 44 has two longitudinalguiding slots 48 that receive a pin 49 projecting from the inner wall ofthe receiving cavity 6 such that they limit the axial movement of theejector plate 44 into an extraction position.

Now the operation of the pistol according to the invention will bedescribed in reference to FIG. 1 and FIGS. 5 to 7.

FIG. 1 shows the essential elements of the pistol according to theinvention in a standby or non-use position. In this position, the barrel4 has recoiled completely into the frame 1 and covers the opening 8towards the receiving cavity 6 for receiving cartridges.

FIG. 5 illustrates the first arming that is performed manually afterhaving introduced a magazine 9 in place in its housing inside the butt 2of the pistol so that it communicates with the receiving cavity 6 forreceiving cartridges 7 by means of the opening 8. The magazine isschematically shown here by means of a series of cartridges 7 arrangedparallel to axis A-A of the barrel 4.

After having unlocked the locking device 37, the barrel 4 is pulledforward against the action of the recoil spring 29 to clear the opening8 for the purpose of allowing a cartridge to move up into the receivingcavity 6 while at the same time it is centered with the aid of the twolugs 46, 47 and of the loop 45 of the ejector plate 44. The projectionof the side lug 47 is then located behind the ridge of the case.

At the same time, the lug 43 at the back end of the barrel 4 will drivethe lug 42 of the pivoting lever 40 which will pivot, pushing the link19 which will then pivot the striker 11 to its armed and locked positionby means of the entrance of the guiding pin 22 into the vertical side ofthe L-shaped slot 21 of the link 19.

When the barrel 4 is released, the recoil spring 29 is in a compressedstate and will again push the barrel until reloading the cartridge 7that is waiting in standby inside the receiving cavity 6, which isillustrated in FIG. 6. The pistol is then ready for the first shot.

FIG. 7 schematically illustrates the moment directly after the striking.Here, the trigger 10 has been pressed, causing the actuating arm 15 topivot upwards pushing with its cam 24 against the lug 25 of the link 19which is then slightly raised such that the guiding pin 22 is locatedinside the horizontal side of the L-shaped slot and the striker 11 isreleased, pushing back the link under the action of the spring 12. Thestriking end of the striker then penetrates the hole 31 of the rear wall30 of the receiving cavity to strike the cartridge 7 which is locatedinside the firing chamber 5 of the barrel 4.

The primer of the cartridge is thus ignited and triggers an ex plosivecombustion inside the chamber. The bullet 7′ is shot out while at thesame time driving the barrel by friction between the inner wall thereofand the bullet. On the other hand, the barrel is preferably striated ina conventional manner for the purpose of transmitting rotation to thebullet in order to stabilize it during flight.

During the movement of the barrel towards its forward position, theejector plate 44 is driven by the barrel 4 a small distance determinedby the length of its guiding slots 48 so that its elastic loop 45 is nolonger opposite the side lug 47 on the rear wall 30 of the receivingcavity 6 so as to be able to eject the case 7′ from the cavity as soonas the ejection port 8′ is clear. As soon as the case 7′ is ejected, anew cartridge 7 moves up into the receiving cavity 6 to be loaded whenthe barrel 4 returns to its recoiled position by the effect of theaction of the recoil spring 29.

Subsequently, rearming is performed automatically when the barrel movestowards its forward position, pivoting the pivoting lever 40.

FIGS. 8 to 13 and 15A to 15B show an embodiment of a magazine 9 suitablefor the pistol according to the invention. The magazine comprises araising plate 51 for raising the cartridges which is constantly biasedupwards by a pressure spring 52. In its upper portion, the magazine 9 isrecessed to allow only one cartridge 7 to pass into the receiving cavity6 at a time. The upward opening is covered by a rotary member 53 havingthe shape of a retractable stirrup.

The retractable stirrup 53 is shown in FIG. 15A in its closed positionand in FIG. 15B in its open position. The two parallel sides of thestirrup are pivotably mounted on both sides of the opening at the topend of the magazine 9.

One of the sides of the stirrup 53 is provided with a leg 53′ extendingdownwardly to penetrate a guiding slot 9 provided on the upper portionof the magazine 9. This leg 9 is suitable for cooperating with anelastic member in the form of a wire form spring 54 arranged inside thegap 2′ of the butt 2 that receives the magazine 9.

One of the ends of the wire form spring 54 is supported against the leg53′ of the stirrup 53 during the placement of the magazine inside thebutt 2 so as to pivot the stirrup 53 from its closed position shown inFIG. 15A to its open position shown in FIG. 15B. The magazine 9 istherefore kept open while inside the butt 2.

It should be noted that the cartridges are stored inside the magazinesuch that their longitudinal axis is parallel to axis A-A of the barrelwhen the magazine is inserted in the butt 2 of the pistol.

Loading cartridges into the magazine is considerably facilitated becausethe cartridges can be introduced into the magazine being supported onthe top on each cartridge and not like in conventional magazines pushingit from behind. For each introduction of a new cartridge 7 into themagazine 9, the stirrup 53 should be closed manually to retain thecartridges inside the magazine.

The raising plate 51 has in the front portion on its upper face a gap 55that can be arranged opposite a slot (not depicted) on the front wall ofthe magazine when the plate 51 is mounted in its highest position aftershooting the last cartridge from the magazine. An abutment member in theform of a shaft 56 slidably mounted inside the frame 1 is arranged infront of the magazine and comprises at its top end a hook 57 projectinginto the slot of the magazine. The shaft 56 is provided at its bottomend with an oblong bore 58 that receives a pin 59 demarcating themovement of the shaft.

When the last cartridge from the magazine 9 has been shot, the hook 57enters the gap of the raising plate and pulls the shaft 56 upwards suchthat the rear face of the hook forms an abutment for the barrel 4 whenit returns from its forward position after shooting the last cartridge.The pistol is then in the state shown in FIG. 12 with the striker 11armed, the barrel abutting against the shaft 56 and the ejection port 8′is kept open towards the receiving cavity 6. The shooter can then push abutton 60 (see FIG. 14) to release the magazine for the purpose of beingable to remove and load it again with cartridges or for replacing itwith another one containing cartridges.

Moreover, during its operation the but ton 60 is suitable for beingsupported on the leg 53′ of the stirrup 53 for the purpose of pivotingit towards its closed position.

After a new cartridge has moved up into the receiving cavity 6, theshooter pulls the shaft 56 downwardly by acting on a handle 61 such thatthe top end of the shaft retracts to release the barrel 4 which is thenpushed back by the recoil spring 29.

If a cartridge 7 located inside the firing chamber 5 is to be removed,the barrel should be pulled towards its forward position and the handle61 pushed upwards to prevent, with the aid of the abutment shaft 56, thebarrel from returning completely to its recoiled position for thepurpose of making the cartridge accessible through the ejection port 8′.

The pistol is advantageously provided with a conventional safetymechanism which locks the striker 11 by acting on the link 19 fromoutside to lock it with the aid of a small locking lever 62 on the sideof the pistol. This lever can be turned in one direction or the other tolock and unlock the striker.

The pistol according to the invention has the following advantages:

-   -   simplified and more reliable mechanism for arming and retaining        the striker;    -   simplified striking mechanism;    -   smaller number of parts as a result of eliminating the moving        grip and the firing pin;    -   no ramp for loading cartridges into the firing chamber, the        cartridges always being kept parallel to the axis of the barrel;    -   improved shooting precision;    -   improved power and increased range of the bullet;    -   less recoil;    -   no outer part except the striker is in movement when shooting;    -   lighter weight pistol;    -   easy maintenance;    -   lower manufacturing cost.

The invention is evidently not limited to the example illustrated in thedrawings and the person skilled in the art will devise variants withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention.

1. A semi-automatic pistol comprising: a frame, wherein a barrel isarranged in said frame and a firing chamber of which is associated witha receiving cavity for receiving a cartridge, said receiving cavitybeing provided with a downwards opening to communicate with a magazine,and with a side ejection port associated with a mechanism for extractingand ejecting a case after shooting; and a firing mechanism comprising astriker mounted so that said striker can pivot in a rear portion of thepistol and suitable to initiate firing the cartridge inside the firingchamber, and a trigger integral with an actuating arm which acts on ameans for arming and retaining the striker in an armed position, whereinthe barrel is mounted in an axially slidable manner between a forwardposition to which said barrel is driven by friction of a bullet whenfiring the cartridge, and a recoiled position to which said barrel ispushed by a recoil spring until reloading a new cartridge, said meansfor arming and retaining the striker comprising a link which at a backend thereof is connected to the striker by means of an articulation andwhich is operated by means of a lever pivotably mounted inside theframe, said lever having a top end operated by the barrel duringmovement of said barrel to said forward position in order to pivot saidlever, and a bottom end forming a cam that acts on said link duringpivoting of said lever, pushing said lever back so as to rearm thestriker.
 2. The semi-automatic pistol according to claim 1, wherein thebarrel acts on said top end of said lever by means of a projectionprovided at a back end of said lever hitting against said lever suchthat said lever is pivoted forward.
 3. The semi-automatic pistolaccording to claim 1, wherein said link is provided with an L-shapedguiding slot, wherein a large side of said slot extends horizontally anda small side of said slot extends vertically upwards, a guiding pinincorporated in the frame extending inside said L-shaped guiding slotsuch that said guiding pin allows the link to carry out a translatorymotion towards the back for arming the striker while at the same timesaid link is subjected to action of a spring that downwardly bias saidlink such that said guiding pin is housed inside said small side so asto retain said link in an armed position of the striker.
 4. Thesemi-automatic pistol according to claim 3, wherein said link can bereleased from said armed position by means of a nose which forms a camprovided at a back end of the actuating arm and which is suitable forabutting on an underside against the link to push said link upwards. 5.The semi-automatic pistol according to claim 1, wherein said actuatingarm incorporates an elastic member which projects upwards and duringpivoting thereof abuts against a lug provided on said link such thattogether said lug and said elastic member form a flexible stop.
 6. Thesemi-automatic pistol according to claim 5, wherein said elastic memberis a wire spring.
 7. The semi-automatic pistol according to claim 1,wherein a rear wall of the receiving cavity for receiving the cartridgeis provided with a hole centered on the firing chamber and which allowsthe striker to strike the cartridge inside the firing chamber directlythrough said hole.
 8. The semi-automatic pistol according to claim 7,wherein a striking end of the striker has an overall conical shapecomplementary to an inner shape of said hole.
 9. The semi-automaticpistol according to claim 1, wherein the barrel slides inside acylindrical gap formed inside the frame being guided by a collarprovided in a periphery of the barrel and by an end part with a centralguiding bore arranged in a front end of the pistol.
 10. Thesemi-automatic pistol according to claim 9, wherein the recoil spring isa helicoidal spring arranged inside an annular interstice formed betweensaid cylindrical gap and the barrel, being supported on said collar ofthe barrel on one side and on said end part on another side.
 11. Thesemi-automatic pistol according to claim 1, wherein the mechanism forextracting and ejecting the case after shooting comprises an ejectorplate arranged opposite the ejection port and one end of said ejectorplate is connected to the barrel and another end of said ejector platehas an elastic loop that extends radically and is suitable for beingcompressed by the cartridge as the cartridge moves up into the receivingcavity for receiving the cartridge.
 12. The semi-automatic pistolaccording to claim 11, wherein the ejector plate has at least onelongitudinal guiding slot that receives a guiding pin so as to limitaxial movement of said ejector plate to an extraction position.
 13. Thesemi-automatic pistol according to claim 1, wherein in order to centerthe cartridge as the cartridge moves up into the receiving cavity, arear wall of said cavity is provided with a first lug arranged so as toform an upper abutment, and with a second lug arranged so as to form aside abutment.
 14. The semi-automatic pistol according to claim 13,wherein said second lug is provided with a projection suitable for beingplaced behind a ridge of the cartridge so as to form a member forextracting the case after shooting.
 15. The semi-automatic pistolaccording to claim 1, wherein the magazine is closed at a top endthereof by a rotary closure member having a shape of a stirrup twoparallel sides of which are shown to be pivoting on the top end of themagazine.
 16. The semi-automatic pistol according to claim 15, whereinone side of the stirrup incorporates a leg directed downwards topenetrate a guiding slot provided at the top end of the magazine, andsaid leg is suitable for cooperating with an elastic member providedinside the gap for receiving the magazine for pivoting the rotaryclosure member to an open position.
 17. The semi-automatic pistolaccording to claim 1, wherein an abutment member in a form of a shaft ismounted such that said shaft slides upwards and downwards to projectinto the receiving cavity when said shaft is in an upper position, suchthat said shaft prevents the barrel from returning to said recoiledposition so that the ejection port is kept open towards the receivingcavity.
 18. The semi-automatic pistol according to claim 17, wherein theshaft forming said abutment member is arranged in front of the magazineand said shaft comprises a hook at a top end of said shaft, said hookprojecting into a slot of the magazine to cooperate with a raising platefor raising cartridges in order to move the shaft upwards after shootinga last cartridge inside the magazine.